Coppell High School sophomore Sydney de León spent her summer months performing a total of five shows at OhLook Performing Arts Center. She was a cast member of “35 Millimeters”, “Cabaret”, “Beauty and the Beast Jr.” and both showings of “Be More Chill”.

Her passion during the summer stemmed from the love she has developed for the art since third grade, specifically the opportunity it gives for exploration of personality and physicality.

“One of the best things about theater for me is the whole character aspect of it,” de León said. “You get to put yourself away for however long you do it and you get to become a whole different person.”

The contrasting roles she played over the summer gave her freedom to truly push the extent of her abilities. From developing a backstory from only the title the photographer in “35 Millimeters”, to finding historical accuracy as Rosie in “Cabaret”, to playing the lead role of Belle in “Beauty and the Beast Jr”. to creating an entirely original personality as a member of the ensemble in “Be More Chill”, de León was able to flex her creative muscles and go deeper into the character portion of theater.

“All of these characters, there were some common threads between them, like ‘they’re both intellectual’ or ‘they’re this and that’ but the nature of each character is extremely different and as an actress, that is one of the most fun things I’ve ever gotten to play with,” de León said. “Because they were so back to back, it was like flipping a switch with every show you did.”

De León will be in the upcoming CHS production of “All Shook Up” as a part of the ensemble.